Country Profiles: Democratic Republic of the Congo

The Democratic Republic of the Congo is located in Africa.

Established as a Belgian colony in 1908, the then-Republic of the Congo gained its independence in 1960, but its early years were marred by political and social instability. Col. Joseph MOBUTU seized power and declared himself president in a November 1965 coup. He subsequently changed his name - to MOBUTU Sese Seko - as well as that of the country - to Zaire. MOBUTU retained his position for 32 years through several sham elections, as well as through brutal force.
CIA World Factbook

With an area of 2,344,858 sq km, it is slightly less than one-fourth the size of the United States of America.

Democratic Republic of the Congo shares a border with Angola, Burundi, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia. It is a vast central basin is a low-lying plateau with mountains in east.



People who live in Democratic Republic of the Congo are called Congolese, which is also an adjective used to describe something from this country (Congo also describes an object from the country). As of July 2012, there are 73,599,190 people in the country. Over 200 African ethnic groups reside in the DRC, the majority of which are Bantu. The four largest tribes are Mongo, Luba, Kongo, and the Mangbetu-Azande (Hamitic) and make up about 45% of the population. Several languages are spoken there: French (official), Lingala (a lingua franca trade language), Kingwana (a dialect of Kiswahili or Swahili), Kikongo, and Tshiluba. Roman Catholics make up approximately 50% of the population, while Protestant 20%, Kimbanguist 10%, Muslim 10%, other (includes syncretic sects and indigenous beliefs) 10% make up the rest.

The country's official name is Democratic Republic of the Congo. The capital is Kinshasa, and the country is made up of 10 provinces. Though the DRC gained independence from Belgium on June 30, 1960, a constitution was not drafted until February 18, 2006. The constitution can be found here through Constitution Finder. The current president is Joseph Kabilar. Information about the leaders of the DRC's government can be found here. The currency is the Congolese francs (abbreviated CDF), which stands at 920 CDF per USD as of 2012.



All of this information was gathered from the CIA World Factbook. For more information, check out these resources...

Democratic Republic of the Congo, CIA World Factbook

Background Notes: Democratic Republic of the Congo, U.S. Department of State

2011 Country Report on Human Rights Practices in Democratic Republic of the Congo, U.S. Department of State.

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